UNOFFICIAL 2008 Sprint Cup Owners Points Standings
for the first FIVE races of the 2008 season

NASCAR permits Penske to swap owners points between Busch, Hornish: NASCAR has approved Penske Racing's request to transfer the owner points from #2-Kurt Busch to #77-Sam Hornish Jr., a move that locks the three-time IndyCar Series champion into the first five races of next season. Hornish publicly thanked Busch for giving him the points at the Penske holiday party on Friday night. Bud Denker, senior vice president of Penske Corp., confirmed Saturday that the team would swap the points with NASCAR's approval. Robin Pemberton, NASCAR's vice president of competition, said the sanctioning body had signed off on the transfer. "This would obviously help Sam as he prepares to run the first five races instead of prepares to qualify for the first five races," Denker said. "With a champion like Kurt Busch and the opportunity to utilize (the points), anyone would be foolish to not take care of the situation." Hornish, a former Indianapolis 500 winner, is leaving that series for NASCAR next season. But his #77 Dodge won't be one of the 35 cars locked into the first five races of the year. As the 2004 series champion, Busch has a provisional position that he could fall back on should he fail to qualify on speed.(ESPN.com/AP)(12-15-2007)

Rank

Car#

Driver

Owner

2007OwnersPoints

2007RaceAttempts/Starts

1

48

Jimmie Johnosn

Jeff Gordon

6723

36/36

2

24

Jeff Gordon

Rick Hendrick

6646

36/36

3

07

Clint Bowyer

Richard Childress

6377

36/36

4

17

Matt Kenseth

John Henry

6298

36/36

5

5

Casey Mears

Rick Hendrick

6293

36/36

6

20

Tony Stewart

Joe Gibbs

6242

36/36

7

77 [was 2]

Sam Hornish Jr. (R)

Roger Penske

6231

36/36

8

31

Jeff Burton

Richard Childress

6231

36/36

9

99

Carl Edwards

Georgetta Roush

6222

36/36

10

29

Kevin Harvick

Richard Childress

6199

36/36

11

1

Martin Truex Jr.

Teresa Earnhardt

6164

36/36

12

11

Denny Hamlin

J D Gibbs

6143

36/36

13

12

Ryan Newman

Roger Penske

4046

36/36

14

16

Greg Biffle

Jack Roush

3991

36/36

15

88 [was 25]

Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Mary Hendrick

3949

36/36

16

8

Mark MartinAric Almirola

Teresa Earnhardt

3929

36/36

17

01

Regan Smith (R)

Teresa Earnhardt

3793

36/36

18

26

Jamie McMurray

Geoff Smith

3556

36/36

19

43

Bobby Labonte

Richard Petty

3517

36/36

20

9

Kasey Kahne

George Gillett, Jr

3489

36/36

21

42

Juan Pablo Montoya

Floyd Ganassi

3487

36/36

22

18

Kyle Busch

Joe Gibbs

3456

36/36

23

41

Reed Sorenson

Chip Ganassi

3275

36/36

24

6

David Ragan

Mike Dee

3251

36/36

25

96

J.J. Yeley

Jeff Moorad

3203

36/36

26

40

Dario Franchitti (R)

Felix Sabates

3163

36/36

27

19

Elliott Sadler

George Gillett, Jr

3140

36/36

28

7

Robby Gordon

Robby Gordon

3066

36/36

29

15

Paul Menard

Teresa Earnhardt

3037

36/36

30

28 [was 88]

Travis Kvapil

Doug Yates

3005

36/36

31

66

Jeremy Mayfield

Joe Custer

2975

36/36

32

38

David Gilliland

Doug Yates

2924

36/36

33

70

Scott Riggs

Joe Custer

2894

35/36

34

22

Dave Blaney

Bill Davis

2856

33/36

35

45

Kyle Petty

Kyle Petty

2814

36/36

NE

21

Bill ElliottPast Champ 1988

Glen Wood

2667

34/36

NE

10

Patrick Carpentier (R)

?James Rocco

2497

30/36

NE

83

Brian Vickers

Dietrich Mateschitz

2351

23/36

NE

00

David Reutimann

Michael Waltrip

2287

29/36

NE

44

Dale JarrettPast Champ 1999

Michael Waltrip

1878

24/36

NE

55

Michael Waltrip

Michael Waltrip

1837

17/36

NE

78

Joe Nemechek

Barney Visser

1654

19/36

NE

84

A.J. Allmendinger

Dietrich Mateschitz

1601

18/36

NE

27 [was 36]

Jacques Villeneuve (R)

Gail Davis

1568

18/36

NE

4

?

Larry McClure

1531

19/35

NE

49

John Andretti

Elizabeth Morgenthau

1502

18/36

NE

37

Eric McClure

Bob Jenkins

683

4/29

NE

60

?Boris Said

?Mark Simo

387

4/6

NE

2 [was 77/06]

Kurt BuschPast Champ 2004

Walter Czarnecki

278

3/8

NE

09

Sterling Marlin

James Finch

223

2/7

NE

08

?

John Carter

150

2/8

NE

33

Scott Wimmer

Richard Childress

142

1/4

NE

34

?

Brad Jenkins

106

0/8

NE

46

?

Jeffrey Wyler

70

1/1

NE

91

?

Eddie D'Hondt

55

1/1

NE

98

?

George Gillett, Jr

43

1/1

NE

02

Brandon Ash

Kenneth Wood

38

0/2

NE

47

?

Tad Geschickter

26

0/2

NE

27?

Kirk Shelmerdine

Kirk Shelmerdine

21

0/3

NE

71

?

Andy Hillenburg

4

0/1

NE

58

James Hylton

J C Weaver

1

0/1

NE

50

Stanton Barrett

Chris Lencheski

x

x

NE = Not Eligible for guaranteed starting spot in first five 2008 races
(R) = rookie of the year candidate
Past Champions Order [who are NOT currently in the Top-35]:
#2-Kurt Busch - was 2004 Cup Champ
#44-Dale Jarrett [sched to run first 5 races] - was 1999 Cup Champ
#21-Bill Elliott [supposedly part time] - was 1988 Cup ChampRED = New driver(s) for 2008BLUE = Past Series Champs [who are NOT currently in the Top-35] with year

compiled and adjusted by Jayski

this is of course...UNOFFICIAL

NOTE: these rules are thru the 2007 season, no word on if there are any changes for 2008, past champions provisionals could be changed or eliminated, nothing announced as of 2-7-2008, and doesn't look like there will be any changes.

Starting Lineup Rules: NASCAR instituted a new procedure that started in 2005 for establishing the starting race field in the NASCAR Cup Series.

Starting positions one through 42 in the NEXTEL Cup Series still will be determined by qualifying speed, the new system will assure the highest-ranked 35 positions of the NEXTEL Cup Series owner championship points that have entered the event prior to the entry deadline one of those starting positions in the field, providing they have made an attempt to qualify [which usually means the team at least practiced and made an effort to qualify].

The remaining seven positions will be assigned to those drivers with the fastest qualifying speeds whose car owners are not among the top 35. The final starting position – the champion’s provisional – can be utilized by a car owner whose driver is a current or past NASCAR NEXTEL Cup champion who participated as a driver during the previous season and was entered in the event for that owner in that car prior to the entry deadline [usually 13 days before the race]. If there is more than one series champion vying for the position, it will be given to the most recent series champion [so Terry Labonte (1996) would get the spot over Bill Elliott (1988)].

If the final provisional starting position – 43rd in the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup – is not filled by a current or past series champion, it will be assigned to the next eligible car owner according to qualifying results.

Through the first five races of the season for the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup, the top 35 in the NNCS of the previous season owner championship points entered in the event prior to the entry deadline will be assured one of the 42 starting positions in the field, provided they have made an attempt to qualify. From the sixth race on, the current owner championship points will be used to determine the top 35 each race week. In the event that conditions prevent qualifying from being run, starting positions will be assigned according to the respective series’ Rule Book.

so...... the way it reads, the top 42 are lined up by speeds ran. If any of the drivers/teams in the top 35 in owners points are not in, then they would start 42nd...and so on if more are not in the top 42. So someone not in the top 35 can still win the pole.BASICALLY How it Works [how I understand it]:
The drivers/team qualify for the race
the top 42 drivers/teams are lined up based on qualifying speed
any drivers/teams in the top 35 in Owners Points not in at that point, will be placed in spots 42, 41, etc depending on how many there are.example: #8-Earnhardt Jr. and #24-Gordon qualify outside the 42 spots, they would line up 41st and 42nd, but by their speed, if neither had a time/speed, Gordon would presently start 41st [his team was 3rd in 2004 owners points] and Earnhardt Jr. would start 42nd [his team was 5th in 2004 owners points], the drivers 41st or 42nd would be bumped.
spot 43 is filled by either a past series champ or the next fastest team/driver.

Past Champions Limited To 6 Provisional Berths in Cup: NASCAR announced an update to the past champion’s provisional rule in the Nextel Cup Series for 2007. Beginning this season, a past champion’s provisional may be used by an eligible driver a maximum of six times over the course of the season. In addition, a team with a past champion eligible driver may only use this provisional a maximum of six times during a season. Previously, there was no limit on usage of the past champion’s provisional over the course of the 36-race season. The provisional gives the eligible driver the 43rd and final starting position in the race field. "As NASCAR seeks to place more emphasis on competition, we have decided the time is right to limit the number of provisionals allowed,” said NASCAR Vice President of Competition Robin Pemberton. “We believe this revision brings the provisional policy in line with the continued growth of the sport.”(NASCAR PR)
This is only for a team/driver OUTSIDE the top-35 in owners points, drivers whose team is in the top-35 in owners points, would already be guaranteed in the field and not need the Past Champions Provisional. The provisional is not used in the event Qualifying is cancelled and not charged.(1-31-2007)

Qualifying Cancelled? so what happens if qualifying is cancelled?

If it is the first five races of the season, the previous season OWNERS points are used:

#1) - Previous season Owner Points [position 1-35][top 35 teams do NOT need to attempt ALL the races]
#2) - Race winners from the previous and current season not already in the field
#3) - ALL Past Nextel Cup Champions not in by 1 or 2
#4) - Current season Owner Points [Top 35][not in by rules 1-3]
#5) - Current season race attempts ties broken by current owners points standings [not in by rules 1-4]

(if the first race of season, would be race attempts from the previous season)

After the 5th race of the season, the current season OWNERS points are used:
#1) - First 35 by current Owner Points [position 1-35][top 35 teams do NOT need to attempt ALL the races]
#2) - Last Years Cup Champ or the Event Champion if not already in the field
#3) - Car Owners whose team has won in the previous and current season not already in the field
#4) - Drivers who have won in the previous and current season not already in the field
#5) - ALL Past Nextel Cup Champions not in by 1 thru 4 [is NOT charged against the 6 past champ provisionals]
#6) - Qualifying Attempts [not starts] with Owners points as the tie breaker
#7) - Qualifying Order Position
(all above apply as long as the team was entered by the entry deadline - usually 7-13 days before the race)